Publication: N22 / Review Period: July 1-31, 2024

The review is being prepared within the framework of the Roadmap to the Kremlin's Policy in Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali Region project. The purpose of the review is to provide readers with information about the main events and trends in the occupied regions of Georgia. The review is a monthly publication and will be useful for decision-makers, public employees, media representatives and other people interested in the developments that take place in the occupied regions of Georgia.

Abkhazia

No to Apartments!

The issue of the so-called apartments, which caused much controversy among the population of the occupied region, has returned to the agenda in Abkhazia. The de facto government once again tried to rush through the “bill” whose passage would lead to economic benefits. As per the widespread opinion, Moscow also forced the de facto government to make the decision since it is interested in Russian citizens acquiring real estate in Abkhazia. Due to the severity of the issue, before presenting the “bill” to the parliament, the de facto president Aslan Bzhania invited “deputies,” heads of districts and city administration for the discussion on July 15.

The so-called “bill” on apartments was largely opposed ealier, and this time, by a de facto government’s decision, the “bill” was submitted to the “parliament” in a new form on July 15. The previous “draft law on the rules of the legal status of apart-hotels and apartments” was replaced by the new “bill on measures to improve the level of the socio-economic development of the Ochamchire, Tkvarcheli and Gali districts.” With the new “draft” the geography of the “bill” was limited only to the eastern regions which are less attractive to tourists and face serious economic challenges. Bzhania assumes that this factor would weaken the opposition. It is also interesting that if previousely the initiator of the “draft law” was the de facto presidential administration, the new one was launched by “deputies.” Opponents believe the name change is a ploy by the de facto government to mislead the public and pass the “bill” with the same content as last year.

The Committee on Economic Policy and Reforms discussed the “bill” on July 17. The pilot project provided for the construction of 10,000 rooms on 150 hectares. The apartments would not be intended for permanent residence. Bzhania also attended the Committee meeting. As he stated, there are 140,000 able-bodied citizens in Abkhazia of which 42,000 are officially employed, 30,000 are self-employed, and 65,000 are unemployed. Hence, it is necessary to develop the economy, said Bzhania. The session was held behind closed doors and opponents of the “bill” were not allowed to attend. The Committee supported to discuss the “bill” at the next session. Dissatisfied citizens assembled at the “parliament” building and confronted law enforcement officers.

Rallies and meetings were held throughout Abkhazia, in which “deputies” also participated. According to “draft law” opponents, the apartments project poses a demographic threat to Abkhazs; apartments will be mainly purchased by wealthy Russian citizens who will settle in Abkhazia and leave the locals without income. In addition, the opponents think that the locals, unlike Russians, will not economically benefit from the project implementation.

Several days of protest covered the entire occupied region. Many “deputies” had to publicly declare their negative attitude. Tensions rose to such an extent that the risk of political confrontation increased, forcing the de facto government to back down on the issue. On July 25, the speaker of the de facto parliament, Lasha Ashuba, signed a document on the withdrawal of the document. A “parliament” issued special statement read: “as a result of long consultations and active intra-parliamentary dialogue, taking into account public opinion, primarily the Council of Elders, Heroes of the Patriotic War of the People of Abkhazia (meaning the Abkhazian War of 1992-1993), representatives of scientific circles, intelligentsia and other concerned citizens, on the consideration of the draft law "On measures to improve the level of socio-economic development of the Ochamchire, Tkvarcheli and Gal districts of the Republic of Abkhazia,” ​​in order to relieve tension and maintain stability, the initiators of the draft law decided to withdraw the submitted bill from consideration and further terminate the legislative process on it.”

The failure of the “draft law” can be viewed as Bzhania’s defeat. Despite the fact that Bzhania personally lobbied for the adoption of the “bill” and planned its implementation in less touristy regions in the first phase, he had to take into account the existing negative sentiments. This defeat will be a serious blow to Bzhania’s political future given that he is preparing for the 2025 “presidential elections.”

Russian Navy Ship in the Port of Ochamchire?

Naval News, deliverying online news coverage of the latest naval technology, naval defense shows and events from all around the world, reported that a Russian Naval ship (a Project 22870 support ship) docked in the port of Ochamchire. According to the distributed satellite photos, the Naval ship was spotted in the port of Novorossiysk on June 28, and in the port of Ochamchire on July 4-5. The ship is considered a tow-rescue ship, although it is often used for military purposes to escort landing ships and to transport missile systems during hostilities. On June 17, 2022, the Armed Forces of Ukraine sank a similar ship (SB-739) carrying anti-aircraft missiles near the Zmeyn Island.

The Border Division of the Federal Security Service of Russia has been using the port of Ochamchire since 2009. The port stations about ten coast guard boats. In October 2023, after a meeting with Vladimir Putin, Bzhania announced that Russia would open a Naval base in the port of Ochamchire. The decision is due to the fact that the ports in Novorossiysk and the Crimean Peninsula are no longer safe, and the port of Ochamchire may be more protected from the attacks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This is the first time that a similar type of Russian warship has been spotted in the port.

The Ship Location According to the Satellite Photo

About the Port of Ochamchire

In July, an investigative journalist group Bellingcat published an article about the ongoing work at the Ochamchire port. Although no information about the construction in the port has been released by official sources, sattelite imagary analysed by Bellingcat shows that construction activity has accelerated since early 2024 with multiple buildings and perimetral features under construction. It is still difficult to say whether the purpose of the mentioned works is the construction of a Naval base, however, it’s undoubtful that the construction works in the port area have been going on at a fast pace in recent months.

A Satellite Map Showing the Works in Progress. Source: Bellingcat

Container Terminal in Ochamchire

On July 17, Bzhania visited the construction of a container terminal in Ochamchire. An intermodal container terminal at the Ochamchire port is being built for the purpose of developing an international transport corridor. The construction is being carried out within the framework of preferential credit implemented by the occupied Abkhazia with Russia’s support. The construction is carried out by Transecosystem whose Deputy General Director is Oktay Khazirish. He is also an advisor to the "Minister" of Economy and previously worked in Abkhazian Railway.

The Container Terminal Area

The terminal will be 250 meters long and 500 meters wide. The terminal will be connected to a railroad line and equipped with platforms for unloading cargo from railcars. The terminal will accommodate 1,200 containers at a time. As part of the project, a Chinese-made mobile crane (Zoomlion) with a lifting capacity of 450 tons was purchased. The crane will be used to load containers onto the ship. According to Khazirish, an engineer from the engineering company has been contracted to come from China and train locals how to use and operate the crane.

As scheduled, the project will be completed in August and start operation in September. However, according to Khazirish, the first shipment from Russia (46 railcars) has already been received, and orders from foreign companies accepted. As Khazirish stated, the port of Ochamchire has an advantage over Russian ports, as there are fewer stormy days compared to Novorossiysk, and transportation to Turkish ports is cheaper. In this regard, it is interesting to hear Khazirish’s statement that in July they received 8 containers with equipment necessary for the plant, which is planned to be shipped from Turkey to Russia.

The construction of a container terminal and increased revenues of Abkhazian Railway in recent years indicate that the port of Ochamchire is actively used for cargo transportation, especially between Russia and Turkey. Despite the fact that Turkey recognizes Georgia's territorial integrity, vessels of certain Turkish companies are engaged in cargo transportation and fishing in the waters of the occupied Abkhazia. On the other hand, Russia, which is under Western sanctions, uses Abkhazia's infrastructure for illegal trade to circumvent the sanctions.

Aslan Bzhania’s Meeting with Rashid Nurgaliyev

On July 22, in Moscow, Bzhania met with the Deputy Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Rashid Nurgaliyev. Nurgaliyev supervises the occupied regions in the Security Council and often meets with the de facto leaders of Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region. According to Bzhania’s press service, the meeting discussed “current issues of Abkhaz-Russian cooperation in the field of security and economy.” As a rule, brief information of a similar content is spread about meetings with Nurgaliyev, and the details of the conversation held at the meeting are unknown.

The Meeting Between Aslan Bzhania and Rashid Nurgaliyev

Sokhumi's Comment on Armenian Minister’s Statement

On July 3, in Tbilisi, the Armenian Foreign Minister, Ararat Mirzoyan, met with his Georgian counterpart. At the meeting the parties voiced statements supporting each other's territorial integrity which did not go unnoticed in Sokhumi. The de facto Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged Yerevan “not to use clichés about the mythical territorial integrity of Georgia.” Sokhumi's displeasure was caused by the change in Armenia's position regarding the support of the UN resolution “On the status of internally displaced persons and refugees from Abkhazia, Georgia and the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia, Georgia.” Sokhumi emphasized that “the Armenian diaspora in Abkhazia has a special place in the process of strengthening the independence of the republic.”

Armenia's position in Abkhazia revived the “Armenian issue.” Jansugh Adleiba, known for organizing protests in Abkhazia and making mixed statements, published a call on his social media page to deprive ethnic Armenians of their political rights. His statement did not cause much response, however, emphasized the urgency of the issue.

Reshuffles

On July 26, Bzhania relieved Temur Akhiba from the post of Chairman of the so-called State Security Service “in connection with his transfer to another job.” Akhiba has been headed the security service since June 2023. Before his release, Akhiba was awarded the rank of “Major General.” On the same day, he was appointed as the Deputy Secretary (Sergey Shamba) of the so-called Security Council. Dmitry Kuchuberia, the Deputy Chairman of the same agency, will be the Acting Chairman of the so-called State Security Service. Akhiba headed the agency for a while. He seems to have failed in his duty. For the upcoming “presidential elections,” Bzhania, in addition to a loyal person, needs a stronger figure who will take more responsibility over controlling internal processes.

Tskhinvali Region

Visit of a Government Official

On July 2, a delegation of the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia visited the Tskhinvali region. The delegation was headed by the Deputy Minister, Dmitry Volvach, who oversees the occupied regions and often visits Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region. His duty is to control the progress of Russian-financed projects. It was Volvach's first visit to the Tskhinvali region this year. In addition to meeting the de facto President, Alan Gagloyev, Volvach also checked the progress of Russian-financed projects.

Dmitry Volvach's Visit to the Tskhinvali Region

Shoigu's Visit?

According to Ekho Kavkaza, the Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Sergei Shoigu, visited the Tskhinvali region in July, however, the “state” media of the region did not disseminate any information about the visit. According to the publication, Shoigu visited Russian military sites in the occupied region. As the article reads, he did not meet with Gagloyev. Shoigu was accompanied by his local "colleague" Anatoly Pliev. According to the newspaper, such a move by Shoigu indicates his unwillingness to communicate with Gagloyev the reason of which is cited Marat Pavlov's dismissal from the post of de facto Defense Minister in April of this year. Gagloyev practically got rid of him. Interestingly, information about Shoigu's visit was not spread by other media. Some believe that the information about the visit is a fake, the dissemination of which was aimed at discrediting Gagloyev.

Election of Heads of the “Parliamentary” Committee

On July 9, heads of ten “parliamentary” committees were appointed. The United Ossetia Party of former de facto president Anatoly Bibilov, which came first in the proportional “elections,” did not participate in the session. As a result, “parliamentary” positions were not distributed among them. According to de facto speaker Alan Margiev, the “deputies” cannot waste time on internal squabbles. Gagloyev's Nykhas Party took over five committees, the People's Party - 3, the Communist Party - 1, a majoritarian “deputy” who joined the Nykhas faction took over 1 committee. According to the results of the “elections” and the distribution of “parliamentary” positions, Gagloyev's party became the most influential political group, which allows its leader to control the “parliament.”

Reshuffles

On July 22, Gagloyev appointed Alan Alborov as Head of the “Presidential” Administration. Alborov was the speaker of the “parliament” of the previous convocation. It is interesting that the current speaker Alan Margiev previously held the post of Head of the “Presidential” Administration. As a result of the reshuffle, Margiev and Alborov swapped positions.

On July 24, Zaur Chochiev was appointed as the de facto Minister of Construction, Architecture and Housing and Utilities. He was the Acting “Minister” after Konstantin Eldzarov left the post in May.

The 45th Anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution

On July 19, the 45th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution was marked in Nicaragua. The de facto Minister of Foreign Affairs, Akhsar Jioev, also took part in the ceremony. Nicaragua is one of those UN member countries which recognizes the independence of the occupied regions. On July 15, Jioev flew to Venezuela and then headed to Nicaragua. At the airport, Jioev was met by the Russian Ambassador to Venezuela, Sergey Melik-Bagdasarov. On July 17, Jioev also met with the Russian Ambassador to Nicaragua, Alexander Khokholikov. On July 19, Jioev took part in a ceremonial event in which the speaker of the Russian State Duma and the Prime Minister of Belarus also participated.

Within the framework of the visit, on July 20, Jioev met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua, Denis Moncada. On July 21, Abkhazia's “Ambassador” Inar Ladaria hosted Jioev in Nicaragua. On July 21, Jioev met with the Adviser to the Nicaraguan President, Ortega Murillo. It should be noted that, unlike Abkhazia, foreign visits of representatives of the Tskhinvali region are less frequent.

Meeting Between Akhsar Jioev and Denis Moncada

Meeting with a Representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross

On July 10, the de facto Minister of Labor and Social Protection, Oleg Gagloyev, met with the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Dragoslav Blažević. Gagloyev positively assessed the ICRC activities which is the only international organization that has been working in the occupied Tskhinvali region since 2008. Unlike Abkhazia, the rest of the organizations in the Tskhinvali region were suspended after the war.

The 120th Meeting of Ergneti

The 120th Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM) meeting was held in the village of Ergneti (Gori municipality). As Irakli Antadze, the Deputy Director of the Analytical Department of the State Security Service of Georgia, stated, eight Georgian citizens remain in illegal detention in the occupied Tskhinvali region as of today. “The main focus will be on applying a humanitarian approach to them and returning them to their families,” he added. Antadze also spoke about Ramaz Begheluri who, on July 20, was sentenced by the de facto court to eight months in prison on charges of the so-called border violation.

The 120th Meeting in Ergneti

In connection with other activities of the occupation forces, a representative of the State Sercurity Service of Georgia said that eight cases of illegal “boarderization” have been recorded since May 16 (as of July 22). “Of the eight cases, five were recorded in May and three in June. This process has covered the Gori and Kareli, as well as Dusheti municipalities, the neighborhood of Gremishkevi. The illegal activity was presented in a full spectrum, including both the reinforcement and repair of previously erected illegal installations and the installation of new ones. New installations were set up in the Gori and Kareli municipalities, mainly in the direction of the village of Kodi, and some activity was also observed in the direction of the occupied Tsnelisi,” he added. 

As a representative of the Tskhinvali region, Yegor Kochiev, reported at the meeting, no violations of the so-called occupation line have been recorded by the Georgian police and EUMM since the last meeting. “The mentioned period was quite calm. There were only three detentions, of which two citizens were released and one was arrested,” Kochiev added. He also stated that the use of the irrigation canal (by Georgian and Ossetian villages) is continuous. According to Kochiev, the issue of removing Georgian police checkpoint in the village of Chorchana was again voiced at the meeting.

The next 121st meeting will be held on September 12.